


Between a Rock and a Hard Place

by DevinBourdain



Series: Missteps in team building (Keres) [4]
Category: The Avengers (2012), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Gen, Trapped
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-31
Updated: 2013-02-13
Packaged: 2017-11-27 16:06:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/663900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DevinBourdain/pseuds/DevinBourdain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After a mission goes sideways Bruce and Clint find themselves trapped. Barton's life depends on Banner's ability to keep the Other Guy at bay.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: The Avengers characters are not mine, just borrowed for this story.  
> Warnings: language and violence

It was the first mission in two months since the Avengers found themselves back in the council's good graces. The team seemed to be doing better and things had gone back to business as usual, whatever that was to begin with. The battle was quick, a further demonstration of how the Avengers had managed to start to come together. It was probably their best showing since Manhattan a year ago.

The Hulk gave a triumphant roar as he proceeded to step on the rusting cars in the service yard. Captain America was going over clean-up details with the recently arrived SHIELD team. Thor and Black Widow were sitting on the back of a flatbed truck taking a breather and watching Iron Man zip around checking for any stray drones in the area. The currently defeated terrorist had created an army of drones reminiscent of Hammer's Iron Man knock-offs and, while they weren't very effective, what they lacked in formability they made up for in annoying abundance. They were easily destroyed, but the sheer numbers had exhausted the team.

"I think the Hulk likes it when we fight in the abandoned warehouse district. Lots of things to smash without us having to scold him for it," quipped Stark as he hovered above Barton. Clint finished unscrewing some of the heads from his spent arrows and placed the shafts back in his quiver. He looked up as Tony pulled out the new tranq gun he'd built for the Hulk. The team's standard for delivering the serum Bruce had come up with to knock his alter ego out was usually delivered via arrow but Tony decided they should have a back up just in case Hawkeye wasn't available to take down the green giant.

The Hulk was doing pretty well with the whole team thing but there were times that he wasn't so willing to let Banner regain control. Sometimes the appeal of an un-smashed building was just too tempting. The doctor had been somewhat reluctant to give Tony's latest invention a trial run, making this the first chance to test the device.

Stark loaded the electronic dart and pulled the trigger. Its homing abilities clearly needing some work as the dart barely brushed the side of the Hulk's leg and failed to administer the shot. Clint let out a chuckle at Tony's poor shot.

"You think you can do better, Barton?" asked Stark as he dropped the gun down to the archer. Clint dutifully reached out and caught the falling object. Just as his hand closed round the gun the dart in the Hulk's leg malfunctioned sending an electric jolt through the Hulk. The beast howled in pain and then turned his snarling face towards Hawkeye and Iron Man; his green eyes focused on the device now resting in Clint's grasp.

"Oh shit," mumbled Clint as the Hulk started charging towards him with a singular goal plastered on his angry face. Barton booked it towards the nearest empty warehouse with the beast hot on his trail.

He offered Stark the one finger salute before disappearing inside the enormous building as the billionaire called out, "Run Legolas, run!"

Thor and Romanoff jumped to their feet as they saw Barton take off with the Hulk in hot pursuit and Tony chuckling to himself as he watched the chase from above. They knew Clint would be alright; he'd put enough distance between himself and the Hulk in the warehouse, fire a tranq arrow then squirrel away somewhere safe until the drug knocked the giant into a deep slumber. It didn't hurt to be prepared just in case the archer did need a hand.

He would never admit it, but Thor enjoyed getting to tangle with the Hulk. The beast offered a challenge, a chance to use the strength that he could not against the rest of the team when they sparred. It reminded him of the battles of his youth. Knowing how Bruce felt about the Hulk, Thor decided not to broach the subject of sparring matches with the beast during training exercises at Stark Tower. Tightening his grip around his hammer, he began to follow after Barton and the Hulk just in case the enraged beast proved to be too much for the archer this time.

Clint ran around a few pillars turning the dial on his bow. The tranq arrowhead was locked and he was just about to pull the arrow from his quiver when he his eyes fell on something very disturbing. The Hulk, who was hot on Barton's heals, took the archer's brief pause to close the gap between them and swiped a large hand at his target.

Barton managed another, "Oh shit." He didn't even realize how close the Hulk was until a giant green hand had him flying towards the wall. Clint smacked hard against the brick wall and crumpled to the ground. He didn't even have time to assess his injuries when the bomb that had been secured to the support beam flashed zero. The force of the explosion brought down the building, burying Barton, the Hulk, and Thor in the rubble.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a mission goes sideways Bruce and Clint find themselves trapped. Barton's life depends on Banner's ability to keep the Other Guy at bay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: The Avengers characters are not mine, just borrowed for this story.  
> Warnings: language and violence

Romanoff coughed as she picked herself up off of the ground. The dust was thick and smoking ash floated in the air. Catching sight of the large pile of rubble that used to be the warehouse, she rubbed her watering eyes and sprinted towards the debris. Steve was at her side surveying the damage and looking for any sign that their teammates had survived the blast.

"Clint!" Natasha's voice was strong and steady despite the panic that was wriggling its way through every inch of her being. She was concerned for all three Avengers but she knew the reality of the situation. Hulk would protect Bruce and Thor was just plain hard to take out, but Barton, despite his skill and training, didn't stand a chance against a collapsing building. Her voice echoed off the surrounding structures but didn't spark a reply.

"You see anything from up there, Stark?" asked Rogers as Iron Man flew over the rubble.

"Negative, Cap." Tony landed next to the pair as he ran a scan of the debris. The three-story warehouse had been demolished, but it wasn't impossible that their friends had survived; they were Avengers after all. "There's something interfering with JARVIS's sensors, but I can pick up a faint life sign; I can't tell who it is. And there's something else over there that I can't get a clear reading on.

Captain America turned to one of the SHIELD agents. "We need you to get a crew down here so we can dig them out. Have medical stand by."

"JARVIS, engineer us a plan so we can start digging out Banner, Thor, and Barton."

"Right away, Sir," answered the AI as it began to scan the debris for stability.

Steve turned to Tony. "We're going to have to do some heavy lifting."

Stark nodded in agreement. A large crane down the road caught his eye. "Any chance you can run a crane, Cap?"

"I can," piped up Romanoff as she started to move towards the machine.

"Really?" he replied in poorly concealed shock.

"What, you don't think women can run heavy machinery?"

"I refuse to answer that on the grounds that you might kill me. Alright, while Romanoff demonstrates gender equality to us, you and I can start with this nice heavy block of concrete here, Cap."

While Black Widow started the crane, Captain America and Iron Man began shifting the wreckage in the search for their missing teammates.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was dark and claustrophobic. Barton tried to take a deep breath, but gasped as a wave of pain ripped through his body and seized his lungs. The collision with Hulk's hand had broken a few ribs. With a shaky hand, he tried to wipe the dirt and dust out of his eyes. There was a faint glow from several dying fires and an emergency light that had survived the collapse. Clint could feel the weight of the building pinning him down, pressing against his back. It took a moment to remember exactly what happened, but as he looked across the larger space near his head he caught a glimpse of the Hulk's hand from under a piece of plywood.

"Bru..." The word caught in his throat. Clint needed the scientist, not his alter ego. Sure, the Hulk was less likely to be injured, but he would also be more inclined to cause things to collapse further. Barton hoped he could get through to his friend and that the doctor was safely tucked underneath something that would protect him.

He tried to take a deep breath and grit his teeth as another wave of pain coursed through him. The pain settled into a burning sensation in his side. He wiggled his hand between his body and the concrete pressing against him and let out a shaky breath as he felt the cold rebar twisted in his side. It wasn't deep but it was bleeding and with the debris pinning him down the puncture wound prevented him from worming his way out into the larger open space in front of him. He could also feel something wrapped around his leg but couldn't shift himself to get a good view.

There in front of him just out of reach was his bow, taunting him with its proximity. He reached out in an attempt to grab it. His fingers barely ghosted the tip. His miraculously intact quiver was pressing into his back despite the pressure that was resting on him. The tranq arrowhead he'd loaded before the collapse didn't do him or Bruce any good with the bow out of reach.

"Bruce," he tried again. The hoarse whisper didn't elicit a response from his teammate. All Clint could do was hope that Banner was fine. Trapped in the dim light of the former warehouse, the archer could do nothing but struggle for his next breath and hope that his friend would be alright and that rescue was coming.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Steve took a deep breath and ground his teeth. Even with Iron Man taking most of the weight and his own enhanced abilities, Rogers was still struggling with the weight of the wreckage. Trying to keep the dilapidated structure stable made the rescue attempt slow going. None of them were willing to give into the idea that they might be too late to save their friends. Their only option was to continue to press on in silent determination.

Natasha pulled the lever to retract the cable and lift a large beam off of the pile. Stark and Rogers were bursting with anticipation over how close they were getting to the life sign JARVIS was detecting. All of a sudden, the pieces of wreckage started to shake until they gave way to a flash of red and silver. Both Captain America and Stark fell on their rear-ends from the force of the being that sprung forth.

Thor landed on the ground shaking his head to clear some of the dizziness. He surveyed the scene and took in the dirty appearance of his friends.

"Are you ok?" asked Steve as he picked himself up and dusted himself off.

"I can find no fault or source of concern. What led to this destruction?"

"A bomb," supplied Tony. "JARVIS is detecting traces of explosive materials. Looks like we missed one of our new friend's parting gifts."

"Where are the Archer and Banner?" inquired Thor as he noticed the absence of the two men.

"We're pretty sure someone is buried over there, but something is interfering with JARVIS's sensor so we can't tell if it's one or both of them."

Thor began to storm towards the direction Iron Man had indicated and reached for one of the large metal beams. Roger's quickly grabbed a hold of his arm causing the god to pause in his efforts.

Steve locked eyes with the Asgardian. "If we pull the wrong piece we could cause a collapse and crush anyone under the rubble."

Tony added, "Looks like we should have added Jenga to the list of group activities."

All eyes turned back to where the life sign was coming from as a loud creak reverberated through the wreckage. Metal moaned and the concrete began to shift and settle a little lower.

"What the hell was that?" demanded Romanoff.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a mission goes sideways Bruce and Clint find themselves trapped. Barton's life depends on Banner's ability to keep the Other Guy at bay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: The Avengers characters are not mine, just borrowed for this story.  
> Warnings: language and violence

Clint froze at the sound of moaning metal and crumbling of concrete; his eyes frantically searched in the pale light for any part of the structure that might signal its intent to collapse. A slight shift in front of him caught his eye as the boards creaked, lowering to fill the space formally occupied by the large green hand. Much to Barton's relief, the metal beams only shifted slightly as the Hulk turned back into Banner. At least for now he didn't have to worry about his friend getting crushed.

The pressure pinning Clint down relaxed a fraction, not enough for him to pull himself out but enough to make breathing a little better. It wasn't much, but that small blessing was worth the world. Craning his neck he followed the beam that shifted over Bruce until it ran over top of his position. Like a seesaw, the large beam had been leaning slightly more on Clint. With the absence of the Hulk's body, the beam had shifted to lean more to Bruce's side.

It took his sluggish mind a moment to contemplate exactly how that affected their current predicament. If Bruce transformed back, the beam would shift and start to crush the archer once more. Even worse, if the Hulk tried to push the beam off then the full weight of the beam would come down on Barton. Well if the days going to go wrong it might as well spectacularly go wrong he thought.

A soft moan called his attention back to his formerly green friend. "Bruce?" The small croak carried over the space separating them and spurred another moan from the doctor. "Can you hear me, doc?"

Bruce could hear someone calling his name, fighting for attention that the jackhammer in his head was trying to steal. He could feel the familiar ache from transforming. Slowly, the memories from before the black void of the Hulk's control filtered back. They had been sent down to the warehouse district which had offered Banner some peace of mind with the chance of an innocent bystander facing the Hulk's wrath diminished. It had seemed pretty simple; the bad guy appeared to be rather unprepared to deal with the force of the Avengers, which led to the question of where he was now.

Along with the familiar ache came a series of new ones, more like a constant pressure that exacerbated the usual discomfort. Banner took in his surroundings and the pieces began to fall into place. It all became disturbingly clear when he caught sight of Barton pinned under a beam surrounded by what had to be the debris of one of the warehouses. Grey eyes were staring at the scientist desperately for some sign of recognition and awareness.

A flash of panic sparked as Bruce began to run the very horrible scenario that the Hulk had brought the building down on his teammate. The panic started to turn to anger and Banner felt the pull of the Hulk start to emerge again.

"Bruce! You have to stay calm," shouted Clint as he watched the doctor start to panic. He could see the grief wash over his teammate and immediately started to try and correct the situation. "You didn't do this, Bruce. It was a bomb that brought the building down not the Big Guy. In fact, I think he might have saved my life by knocking me out of the way."

Taking a deep breath, Banner focused on Barton's words, then searched within himself for the strength to try and regain his control. It took a few moments, but the relief at knowing the Hulk hadn't put Barton in this position helped settle his nerves enough that he could pull the beast back.

"How bad is it?" asked Banner as he tried to assess Clint's condition. All he could really see was the archer's head and shoulders. The rest was covered by the beam and other pieces of wreckage.

"Just a couple of bumps and bruises. Rather stuck at the moment. The team was right outside the building when it collapsed and the comms are down but I'm sure they're working on getting us out right now, so you just have to stay calm, Bruce," assured Barton. The first part had been a lie, but the doctor didn't need to know about the rebar sticking into his side. It didn't seem to be bleeding that badly and Bruce didn't need the extra pressure in an already tense situation. Hulking out right now was going to prove disastrous for Clint and do nothing for Banner's conscience.

Rubbing some of the dust out of his eye with his free hand, Bruce glanced around at the wreckage that was their prison. He could feel something pinning his legs down. He wouldn't be able to pull himself out and get to Barton. It wasn't painful, just really inconvenient. Taking in the way the beams were leaning, Bruce decided to test a hypothesis. Pushing with all his might he managed to get one of the beams to lift and tip to put pressure on another one pushing down onto Barton. The archer hissed and gritted his teeth until Bruce relaxed and the beam fell back into place.

"If I Hulk out, it's going to push up on that beam and crush you."

"Yeah," came the subdued reply.

"An important fact, don't you think?"

"Didn't really want to add any pressure, doc, but yeah if you can't keep it in check we're going to have a Hawkeye pancake. I'd like to avoid that if at all possible. So how are you doing?"

"If I Hulk out, I'd be able to get us out of the rubble, but I'd crush you doing it, but staying here only increases my chances of losing control. Yeah, this situation is really good for stress light." The sarcasm lightened the mood only marginally.

"You can do it, Bruce. I have faith. Next time I promise to get us trapped on a beach somewhere, sound good?" Clint could see the effort Bruce was putting into staying calm. He silently urged the team to move faster.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a mission goes sideways Bruce and Clint find themselves trapped. Barton's life depends on Banner's ability to keep the Other Guy at bay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: The Avengers characters are not mine, just borrowed for this story.  
> Warnings: language and violence

In and out, in and out. Bruce sucked in a deep breath, counted to ten, and then released it. He tried to conjure any pleasant place he could recall and picture himself there, anything to take his mind off of the present situation. Tony had asked him his secret once and Bruce honestly thought he wouldn't have to resort to any of the usually ineffective techniques again, but he knew he had to stall for time. He could feel the rage swirling in him. The added pressure of knowing that Clint was going to die if he let it get the better of him made the transformation a certainty. The only real control left to the doctor was how long he could hold it off. He desperately prayed he had it in him to make it till their rescue.

This was the nightmare Banner had been hoping to avoid, having someone depend on his ability to quiet his inner rage or face the wrath of green anger unleashed. It wasn't just someone this time; it was Clint, Avenger, teammate and friend. If it wasn't so ill-timed, he'd cry "I told you so" to everyone that thought that the Hulk could be a force for good. Situations like this were what it always came down to…death to anyone that got too close to Bruce.

Faith. Clint said he had faith that the doctor had enough control to not kill the archer. He would have to recommend SHIELD do a thorough psych evaluation on Barton if the man survived this. Bruce wanted to know what defect led Clint to put that kind of faith in someone like him.

Taking a deep breath, Bruce redirected his train of thought. Focusing on the negative would only fuel the Hulk. That was part of the irony of the situation; the one time the Hulk could help, Bruce couldn't use him. Had he been outside the building, the team could have used his strength to help clear the rubble; if Clint could pull himself out, the Hulk would protect Bruce when the beam shifted and crushed him. Unfortunately, the beast's self-preservation instinct was too strong and would prevent Banner from trying to make the sacrifice to save Clint.

Focusing on the positive would allow him to stay in control; he had to stay away from the thoughts of being trapped and the possibility of being crushed. The Hulk had stopped an alien invasion and been useful to the Avengers on their missions since and even Barton had just said that the Hulk probably saved him by knocking him out of the way. Bruce felt his stomach drop. Knocked the archer out of the way!

The doctor eyed Barton carefully. "How hurt are you really?"

Clint lifted his head from his arm and looked Bruce square in the eyes. He knew what the doctor was really asking. "I told you, doc, bumps and bruises."

"Don't lie to me Clint; I can see you wilting from here."

Shifting his gaze away from his teammate, the archer let out a sigh. "I've got a piece of rebar poking into me and a couple of broken ribs, probably from the building collapsing."

"Or from when I hit you!"

"Even if that was the case, and we don't know that, I'd take a few bruised ribs from a Hulk hit over being next to a bomb any day of the week."

Bruce snorted at the idea that being beaten down by the Hulk was a positive alternative to anything.

"Seriously, you saved my life Bruce, so thank you." The honest and genuine tone of the statement conveyed more appreciation and thanks than just for the events of the day. It might have been Natasha that kicked his ass to get him back together after his brush with the council, but Bruce had been the sympathetic ear that waited with him in the middle of the night for test results that always came back negative when Clint feared the council had managed to re-infect him with Keres. He had faith the doctor could keep himself under control, but just in case he wanted to make sure Bruce knew he appreciated everything that he had done for him the last few months.

It was painfully slow going and the day had begun to shift towards night.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The bright lights the SHIELD engineers rigged up illuminated the debris. The area the team was focusing on was less stable than the section that had collapsed on Thor, causing everyone to spend more time adding supports and shirring up wreckage instead of clearing it.

A shuttering snap echoed through the silence and all eyes turned towards two of the agents working on cutting through one of the beams. Small gasps and silent prayers went out as everyone working on the pile of debris felt the subtle shift.

"Careful!" barked Steve, not wanting to think about how that would affect the people trapped beneath. The only thing worse than not knowing if they were alive and alright to begin with was wondering if anything they were doing now was making their situation worse. "Tony?"

Iron Man shook his head. "Something shifted about fifty feet down. We need to pull out of that area and try from another angle or we're going to collapse the open space under there."

"Alright, we need to start rotating shifts. I don't want any mistakes because people are getting tired," ordered Rogers. It felt like taking a giant step back. It was taking a giant step back; they had worked on clearing that spot for three hours and now they had to try rescuing their friends from another point. "Stark, where's stable enough for us to start again?"

"If we dig here and tunnel over we should come out right in front of the mass JARVIS is reading."

"Widow, one more hour and I want you to rotate out. An hour after that I want Thor to replace Tony then you and I'll switch," instructed Steve. Romanoff nodded. Even though she didn't like the idea of sitting on the sidelines while Clint and Bruce were trapped down there in who knows what condition, the thought of messing up and costing her friends their lives was worse. One mistake could have disastrous repercussions for the two men below.

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The increase in dust should have been the first clue that something bad was about to happen; the small rumble was the second. Banner let out a sharp cry as a hunk of metal slammed down on his ankle and a chunk of brick collided with his temple. The warm trickle of blood crept into his eye and the throbbing in his ankle sped with the increased beating of his heart.

Hearing his friend's reaction, Barton cried out, "You ok, Bruce? Bruce!"

Unable to offer a coherent response, the only sound that crossed the open space were the moans and grunts as he fought against the impending change. The pain in his ankle spread to the rest of his body as his muscles began to expand to fill the greening skin. Bruce's muscles twitched and his whole body spasmed at the expanding mass. He tried to hold on to the desperate need to keep in control, but the reason he needed to maintain himself got lost in the haze that was filling his mind.

The howl of anguish assaulted Barton's ears. Looking up, he watched Bruce writhing in pain taking on a distinct green tinge. Before he had time to process the events unfolding, the pressure of the beam on his chest and back began to increase. As the pressure built, Clint tried to take a breath so he could call out to Bruce. His broken ribs protested first and the others threatened to snap at any moment.

Just when Banner thought he was about to lose himself to the Hulk, a sharp cry pierced the veil. "B-banner! St-op!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a mission goes sideways Bruce and Clint find themselves trapped. Barton's life depends on Banner's ability to keep the Other Guy at bay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: The Avengers characters are not mine, just borrowed for this story.  
> Warnings: language and violence

The choked sob registered to both Bruce and his alter ego and he felt the beast pull back enough that he could start to regain control.

The grunts of pain and effort of Barton trying in vain to stop the beam from crushing him caused Bruce to freeze. He came to the horrible realization that he was holding himself two inches off the ground and was larger than normal; he wasn't Hulk size, but Barton was pinned before and even the slightest shift would cause the beam to apply painful pressure on his friend.

In a shaky voice, the doctor called out, "Clint?"

"Still here," managed the archer through short gasps.

It took a few moments to completely center himself and calm down. Shortly after, all signs of the Hulk vanished, leaving the mild-mannered doctor in the same peril he was in earlier. If it wasn't for their precarious situation, Bruce would have cheered. That was the closest he had ever been to fully transforming and managing to bring himself back from the brink. Of course it was only the calm before the storm, a preview of what was to come. Eventually the beast wouldn't be able to be quieted and, while Banner suspected that the beast might have responded to the plea of a teammate, it wouldn't be long before he demanded to be freed from the danger of their precarious situation.

The pressure slowly disappeared, allowing Clint to breathe a little easier. He no longer felt like he was in a press and took a moment to get the pain under control. At least the rebar didn't puncture any further.

"How bad did I hurt you this time?" questioned Banner. He didn't want to hear the answer; it wouldn't really help his control and, if he had made it worse, he wasn't in a position to offer any aid.

"I don't think any more ribs broke and I can still breathe, so thanks."

"Why are you thanking me? I almost flattened you!"

"But you didn't. You kept it together; I think you're getting better at this, Bruce," offered Barton.

"Well don't celebrate just yet. I have a feeling the Big Guy isn't going to give up a second chance to play."

"I think he might surprise you one day."

"What makes you think that?" The usual response was to run and hide from the doctor and when that wasn't an option people tended to stay on high alert and maintain an inpersonable amount of space between themselves and him. But not the Avengers. Tony never showed any fear. Bruce wondered if it was because the man was genuinely not afraid or completely incapable of self-preservation. He could understand his potential not registering for Thor, and the Captain was either numb to all horror or too focused on his own personal demons to pay attention to the very real green one that often stood next to him. Romanoff had relaxed in the last year, but Banner could tell that she was constantly aware of where and how he was, not that he could blame her. She still managed to be personable in their daily lives. With the exception of Barton's own personal issues, the man seemed bright enough to recognize the threat that the Hulk promised to be, yet the archer constantly ignored it and insisted that he could be made valuable.

"Trust me, the things I've seen, it could be a lot worse when you lose control. The last couple of months, the collateral damage has been minimal, so I call that progress and so should you. Besides, you're a good guy, Bruce. Some of that has to rub off on him sooner or later."

Shaking his head, Banner chose not to think of the 'worse things' Barton had seen; he had seen what was left in the Hulk's wake and thought that was synonymous with 'worst thing'. "Any chance you still have a tranq on you?"

"You want the good news or the bad news about that?" Barton caught Bruce's hopeful glimpse. He knew the doctor wanted to be knocked out, thus removing the potential for their green friend to come out and play. Clint didn't want to be the bearer of bad news, but the ideal situation was just out of reach. "I have the arrow and a clear shot; just don't have a bow to do it. If my arm was an inch longer I could probably reach it but..."

"But you have a piece of rebar jabbed into you and clawing your way forward is going to tear you to shreds."

"Pretty much sums it up."

"So, a final desperate act then?"

Clint nodded. Depending on how much warning he had and how quickly the beam began to press down on him, he might be able to force himself forward and grab the bow. He could probably get the shot off too, but then he'd accomplish himself what Bruce was trying to stop the Hulk from doing. He'd just bleed to death instead of being crushed.

"You can't run from your problems, Bruce."

The tranq would be an easy out for him, chemically halting the problem instead of relying on an inner strength that he didn't believe he had. "It works out better for everyone if I do."

"Does it?"

"I made it through a year without hurting anyone."

"Yeah, and when you decided not to run away you saved the world, and you've been saving it ever since. It works out better in the long run if you don't run."

"How did you get this insightful?" It was strange to get encouragement from Barton, not that he thought the man incapable of it. The last year had been extraordinarily hard on the archer and it seemed that he had finally turned the corner from the all-consuming self-loathing that their team seemed to have excelled at, at various points in their lives.

"I pissed off an angry Russian until she beat the crap out of me then nearly drowned me. Things are oddly clearer after that."

A shutter ran through Bruce and fought to suppress it. He prayed the team would hurry up and make an appearance. He didn't want to disappoint Clint by failing to keep it together.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a mission goes sideways Bruce and Clint find themselves trapped. Barton's life depends on Banner's ability to keep the Other Guy at bay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: The Avengers characters are not mine, just borrowed for this story.  
> Warnings: language and violence

The temperature had dropped, adding bone-chilling coldness to the ever growing list of things for the two trapped men to combat. As if the pressure (both literal and figurative), pain, hunger, and an excruciatingly dry thirst weren't enough, the night was filled with the quiet chattering of teeth. Bruce would have killed for a jacket or any sort of clothing at that point. Just another little thank-you gift left by the Hulk. Barton wasn't any better. He may have been clothed, but the blood loss the archer insisted wasn't happening wasn't helping to maintain his body temperature.

The pair were quiet as they each pondered their current predicament and Banner was sure that Barton had nodded off a couple of times as they waited impatiently for help. "You still with me, Clint?"

"Mmm here." The archer's grey eyes cracked open slightly as he glanced toward Bruce. "Listen, Bruce... if it comes down to it and only one of us is going to make it out of here... I want you to take the chance."

"We're both going to get out of here, Barton."

"Yeah, but if we don't, if you start to feel like time is running out, you have the best chance of making it; the Hulk can get out of this."

"I think you need to stop talking now."

"Look, Bruce, we've been stuck here for a day. If it takes the team too long to get to us... we can only go so long before things like dehydration and hypothermia finish off what this building started."

Banner had to dig deep and force himself to believe what he was about to say or the archer would find no comfort in the words. "The only thing I have to concern myself with is keeping the other guy in check for a little longer because the team is going to be here in no time."

"I know they are," muttered Barton as his eyes drifted closed again.

Bruce stared at the man who was so willing to do anything for his teammates, the same man who believed wholeheartedly that he was going to be the one to doom the Avengers. He thought about the first night Barton came down to the lab and asked Banner if it was possible that the Keres incident could be reproduced; he could see the fear carefully hidden behind the stoic agent's demeanor. The doctor knew that Clint was fine and even after knowing what happened the first time and not wanting a repeat performance, he still trusted Barton with his life. If Bruce could trust Barton with his life then maybe he could understand why Clint trusted him. Maybe the members of the team had more in common than their shared adventures.

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In retrospect, it could have been kind of funny, the thing that finally set Bruce off. The situation had provided many opportunities for him to lose control, but he'd somehow had managed to cage the rage. The Charlie-horse that chose that moment to plague his calf was the electric taser to poke the Hulk.

"Clint, you need to get that bow now!" shouted Banner who was losing his battle rather quickly. He knew what he was asking and had no doubt the archer would do whatever it took to grab his weapon. He only hoped that the team would be able to get to Clint before the injuries he was about to exacerbate on Banner's behalf cost him his life.

Barton's head snapped up at the urgent call and his brain registered 'oh shit!' before spurring into action. Clint knew there would be no talking Banner back this time. His muscles pulled as he desperately reached out for his bow, fingertips stretching with everything they had. The harsh rebar imbedded in his side pulled back and bit into his side; a warm stream of red slowly curled around the metal. Clint knew Bruce had bucked up under the strain of transforming when the beam pressed down hard and stole his breath.

Not going to let Bruce live with the guilt of crushing him to death, Barton kicked the wreckage with his feet, ignoring the sharp pain as the metal and wire that had tangled around his limb tightened and tore his flesh. Desperate fingers brushed the black bow and one last frantic move forward allowed them to curl around the desired object. In a motion that defied his current position, Barton pulled the arrow and lined up his shot with an unnatural determination.

Clint looked at his target and instead of the menacing green eyes he believed would be greeting him, Banner's soft brown held his attention. Bruce was frozen in place and clearly waging a battle in his own head.

Hesitantly the archer called out, "Bruce?" His hands began to tremble around his weapon as he waited for an answer.

It took a few moments, and thankfully the Hulk was no longer trying to move, but Bruce spoke up. "I think- I think I have it under control." Surprise, relief, optimism, and dread all warred for control.

"That's good. I knew you had it in you, doc." The words were spoken at a fraction of the archer's normal voice.

Clint pillowed his forehead on his hands, bow still tightly clinched in his right hand. The dim space was beginning to spin and his stomach was rolling. Wedging his hand by his side he could feel that he was in trouble; a deep gash now trailed down his side to where the rebar was stabbing. The steady splatter of the drops of precious blood leaking out of him echoed off of the rubble.

Sleep began to tug at the archer and without protest he silently closed his eyes against the steady pleas from Banner to not. He was content with the knowledge that Bruce wasn't directly responsible for his end.

A constant banging and scraping noise penetrated Bruce's singular focus on his friend. "Help! We're over here. Barton needs medical attention!" He hoped it was the team showing up and not the foreboding sounds of the structures collapse.

"Doctor Banner?" came the muffled voice of Steve Rogers. It was the most beautiful sound Bruce had ever heard.

"You have to hurry, Captain!"

A minute later, light flooded the space between Banner and Barton. Bruce shut his eyes against it. When he opened them again the light illuminated the red and gold of Iron Man's suit. "Look, we found the two missing members of the Island of Misfit Toys," quipped the billionaire.

"Tony! You have to help Clint," ordered Bruce.

Stark glanced in the direction the doctor pointed and nodded as he waved the medical team in. Roger's crawled over to Bruce and began assessing the best way to free him from his prison. Banner desperately tried to peer around his rescuer to watch the medics with the archer. He wasn't sure if Clint was still with them.

A light caught his eye. Clint wanted to chuckle at the absurdity of there actually being a bright light when you die and wasn't it supposed to be white not blue? There was a flash of red and then Tony Stark's face.

"An eternity with Tony Stark; I'm in hell," muttered Clint.

"I'm going to try and not take that personally," snapped Tony.

"Ow," breathed Clint as a medic slipped an IV in. So maybe it wasn't hell.

"You're going to be fine. We just have to get you and Bruce to the hospital and..." That was all Clint caught as he passed out, his head rolling limply in Stark's metal hand.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a mission goes sideways Bruce and Clint find themselves trapped. Barton's life depends on Banner's ability to keep the Other Guy at bay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: The Avengers characters are not mine, just borrowed for this story.  
> Warnings: language and violence

Barton cracked his eyes open to a blur of red. It eventually turned into the shape of Natasha sitting by his bed.

"Get the number of the truck that hit me?" whispered Clint.

"No, but I got the address of the building that collapsed on you," offered Stark enthusiastically from the other side of Barton's bed. "You're having a bad year, Barton."

Clint looked at Romanoff for some reassurance that he wasn't checking out any time soon before he corrected, "This is nothing, physically speaking; it's been a light year."

"You have a few broken ribs, a couple of cuts to your right ankle and a gash in your gut, but that horseshoe that's firmly up your ass must have deflected the rebar because it missed anything important. A couple of stitches and units of blood and you're almost as good as new. The ribs will take longer but you know the drill," explained Natasha.

"Anyone else in favor of wrapping Barton up in bubble wrap for our next mission?" asked Stark. Barton dutifully flipped him off. "Aw, I'm thrilled that finger still works."

"Glad you're going to be alright," said Steve who was sitting on Bruce's bed behind Tony.

"Can you guys give us a minute?" asked Bruce. Natasha nodded and walked towards the door with Stark and Rogers in tow. Thor gave Clint's foot a firm pat and followed his team out into the waiting room.

"You alright there, Bruce?" asked Clint pointing to the bandaged and propped up ankle.

"I'm fine, just a fracture. Couple of weeks on crutches, nothing to be too concerned about. It's not like I was almost crushed by a guy that can't keep it together." The misery and guilt was etched on Banners face like a tattoo.

"But you didn't, doc. You held it together and here we are safe and sound."

"Safe and sound isn't lying in a hospital bed with broken ribs because I hit you."

Clint held up a finger to pause the other man's guilt trip. "We don't know that the Hulk did it. Besides, when it really counted you didn't let your anger get the better or you. I'd say we're making progress and, if that isn't comforting, I'm sure that Stark can get us a bottle of the good stuff and we can drink our self-proclaimed failures away together."

"Why do you have so much faith in me? We barely know each other; we were brought together by circumstance and after that you spent the better part of the last year avoiding everyone while I hid in Tony's lab. With the exception of the last two months, our interactions have been Avenger business. Even now, it's not like we have conversations with any real substance, so I can't even begin to fathom why you trust me."

"I know enough. Besides, if your soul's not salvable then what hope do the rest of us have? You try to do good and when you felt like you couldn't you removed yourself so you couldn't harm anyone. The rest of us just change targets." Barton curled up as best he could and closed his eyes; if he was asleep then Banner couldn't apologize for something that wasn't his fault and maybe the man could see the positives about what happened that night.

Realizing his companion wasn't going to carry on with the conversation any further, Banner took his lead and decided to follow suit. Stifling a yawn, he thought about what the archer had said. The ends didn't justify the means in his book. He had managed to postpone his transformation, but Clint has still gotten hurt. He wasn't going to say he could stop himself from changing completely because if the team hadn't shown up when they did the doctor highly doubted they wouldn't have been scraping Hawkeye up, but that was more control than he had at the beginning. It offered a reassurance that he wasn't sure he should be relieved for or leery of. Maybe he could handle more stressful situations without casualties or maybe he would develop a false sense of security and all that control he thought he had would vanish at the moment he needed it most.

Bruce thought back to their final moments of being trapped and shook his head. The painkillers must be doing a number on him because when he thought about the fact that Clint would do anything, including injuring himself, to make sure Bruce didn't carry the guilt of direct responsibility for killing his teammate, for a split second he thought he recalled an electric blue tinge to Barton's eyes. Dismissing it as nothing more than an over active imagination and an acute case of paranoia caused by all the Monday nights in the lab running unnecessary tests on the archer's blood to prove to Clint that he wasn't a threat to the team, Banner closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep feeling safe with his fellow Avenger in the bed beside him.

The end.


End file.
